So you think you can be a rotary exchange student?

Hello all! I figured it was time for another post, so here it goes. I got an email recently from what should be my fourth host family. I'll have two brothers, one a year older and one a year younger, and they have a really cute dog! I've been talking to the dad, and he seems really nice. They also sent pictures of themselves- Yay! I also got an email from a Rotex over in Japan telling me that there's going to be some sort of language camp a little after I get there, and I need to make a presentation about where I'm from. They mentioned wearing traditional costumes, so I figure I'll show up in a Red Sox hat, a Celtics t-shirt, sweatpants, and carrying a Dunkin Donuts coffee. Sound about right?

Anyway, that's about all my new info for now. I'm sure once I got to Japan, these posts will get much more interesting. But I figured I would add something else to this post: I've had quite a few people ask how I became a Rotary exchange student, and, because I was too lazy to explain the whole process to them then, I promised I would explain would explain on my blog. So here is a breakdown of how to become a Rotary exchange student:

Step 1: Contact your local rotary club.
I actually found out about the program from an ad in my school's course selection book, and then sent my mom to a meeting about it, in which my club's youth exchange officer explained what the program was and how to apply. She brought home his email address, so I could email him about setting up our first meeting...

Step 2: Fill out the initial application.
But before I could even meet with the club, I had to fill out an application with basic information about myself, so the club could get to know me a little before we met. Then I got an email back from the club with a meeting date...

Step 3: The first interview 
This interview is for your rotary club to decide whether your a worthy candidate to put through the application process. I was super nervous at first, but everyone was really chill, and I felt a lot better by the end. I went home, and in a few hours I got a call saying they had approved me! They gave me a date for my district interview and a link to the real application...

Step 4: The Application
Mine was a 13-page packet whose completion involved extra visits to the doctor and dentist, much picture-taking, and copious amounts of blue ink. Needless to say, it was not the most enjoyable month, although there was one interruption in the middle...

Step 5: The District interview
This is the really big, important interview, in which you have to talk to the people who in charge of exchange for your whole district (ours covers southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island). Again, the people interviewing me were really nice and friendly, but this time it was much more serious. The next day, I got an email saying I had been approved to be a Rotary exchange student! I sent in my application and the waiting began...

Step 6: Country Selection
For me, waiting a month and a half felt like forever to find out where I would be spending the next year of my life. But one fateful day, I got the call from one of my district's YEO saying I would be going to Japan! I was really excited- Japan had been my second choice. I had heard stories of people not even getting one of their top eight (I had 8 choices, I don't know about other districts).

After getting my country, the rest of the year has just been waiting (im)patiently for my guarantee forms, which told me all my information that I needed to know. I finally got them in May, which was, by far, one of the most exciting days of my life! I spent the rest of the day running around my house and researching my new school on the internet. I also had two orientations in that time, which were both great. Exchange students are such fun people! Anyway, since then, it's just been a rush to learn Japanese and a countdown to my departure.

So that, in a nutshell, is the outline of how to become a Rotary exchange student (at least where I'm from, there are probably many variations depending on your club).

Well, that's all for today! 12 DAYS TO TOKYO! またね。